3 men charged in robbery of cigarettes from store

ALLENSTOWN - Police on Wednesday arrested three men in connection with the robbery of a convenience store in December, Chief Shaun Mulholland said.

Mulholland said Timothy M. Downing, 23, of Concord; Richard R. Fortier, 23, of Allenstown; and Brandon Lanum, 27, of Stratham, robbed the Suncook River Convenience Store on Dec. 17, stealing thousands of dollars worth of cigarettes. The cigarettes were the only items stolen, Mulholland said.

'They're marketable. They're easy to sell,' he said.

Downing and Lanum allegedly broke into the store through its roof while Fortier waited outside.

'Fortier was driving the getaway car that didn't quite get away,' Mulholland said.

Lanum and Downing were already being held in New Hampshire State Prison in Concord on charges they robbed the Merrimack Savings Bank on Manchester Street, Mulholland said. Lanum was also arrested in late December by Concord police on charges he robbed the Citizens Bank branch at McKee Square in Concord.